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When it comes to ice cream and gelato, Adam Sperlinga doesn’t just know what tastes good – he knows how to scale it. As Operations Manager at Invidia Foods, Adam helps steer a growing family business that wholesales ice cream and gelato to retailers around the country.
With deep Italian roots and a history in Melbourne’s pasta scene, the family made a smart pivot into wholesale ice cream just before the pandemic hit – a move that turned out to be as timely as it was strategic.
“We’re ice cream connoisseurs,” Adam says with a grin. “And now we get to bring that passion to more people, on a larger scale.”
After testing out a retail space, the family decided to branch out into the wholesale ice cream industry.
Six years on, Invidia is no longer the new kid on the block. With multiple brands under its umbrella and a growing list of clients – each needing accurate, high-quality labelling, Invidia relies on Dial A Label to keep things cool, consistent and compliant.
Scoops for every style
Invidia Foods is on a mission to be Australia’s “complete solutions for gelato and ice cream professionals.” And judging by their growing footprint, they’re well on their way.
The business has its fingers in many tubs – producing ice cream, gelato, ripples and choc tops under multiple labels. Lello is their crowd-pleasing brand, serving up familiar favourites like mint choc chip and boysenberry swirl, while The Serendipity brand offers high-end, artisanal gelato for the luxury market.
You’ll find Invidia’s products everywhere from restaurants and dessert bars to gelaterias, acai joints and donut shops – basically, anywhere without the resources or expertise to churn out a tub or a choc-top in-house.
Beyond the product itself, Invidia also supplies back-of-house equipment, technical support and training, so venues can create their own ice cream and gelato in-house.
Solving a sticky situation
As Invidia’s product range expanded, so did the complexity of their labelling needs. With hundreds of flavours and formats heading to different clients, Adam needed a clean, professional solution – and fast.
Like many growing businesses, Invidia experienced some growing pains. Products were sold under multiple brands, and some required customer-specific branding. Labels on outer cartons lacked clarity, making it difficult for freezer packers to identify which product was for which client.
That’s where Dial A Label was able to help.
Working closely with Invidia, Dial A Label developed clear, full-colour labels to help packers instantly identify which product went where. For example, one of Invidia’s major cinema clients uses vibrant colour-coded labels for their choc tops – mint in green, boysenberry in pink – while Invidia’s in-house Serendipity brand originally used white.
The system worked so well until Adam took it a step further.
“One day I said, by chance, can we try a half-pink, half-white label?”
“That really helped,” Adam emphasises. “It makes it even easier when we are doing a stock take, because you can just count the colours rather than trying to read the label every time.”
From Melbourne to the Middle Kingdom
Invidia’s ice cream isn’t just a local hit – it’s now making its mark overseas, with exports to China.
Initially, each export carton had to be labelled twice: once in English, and once in Chinese. Matching the two labels to the correct product created room for error – and doubled the packing time.
Dial A Label came up with a simple but effective solution: an extra-long wraparound label, printed with English on one side and Chinese on the other. Now, packers apply one label instead of two – and know exactly which flavour they’re handling, no translation required.
“It eliminated the potential for mistakes,” Adam explains, “and we get the labeling done in half the time. One big label, half the printing – it just works”
Dial A Label has been involved from the early stages, helping bring new brands to life with preliminary labels and new design elements to support each launch.
“We’re very appreciative of Dial A Label’s work,” says Adam. “They’ve always been really helpful.
“When working with Dial A Label, no request is too hard. They are an extension of our business! It’s the little things – their flexibility, their reactiveness. Even when it’s a late order, they find a way to get it done in time.”
With a freezer full of new ideas – and the labels to match – Invidia’s next chapter looks cooler than ever.
Need high-quality labels and above-and-beyond customer service from the best in the business? Contact Dial A Label to find out more about how our labels can help grow your business.
